Two days ago, I hit the lake and did a set of water running, and a swim. Pretty good workout.
Water running
60 (R/L) steps x 6 w/ 1 min rest
Max HR 158
Avg HR 129
Lake swim - 340 yds
I was happy to have the lake by myself. ... since a casual visitor to the lake who would see me water running might think I was struggling, maybe drowning. lol
This morning I tried 'strict' pullups - all from full extension, only 18. Definitely different than the 'near full extension' pullups I normally do.
Today, I got the DonJoy OA Nano offloader brace today, free with my insurance. I looked it up, it generally sells for over $600 new. I tried it out on a bike sprint with some brief standing hills. Yea, it works. It seems to prevent 180º full extension - maybe allowing up to just few degrees short of full extension, and corrects the valgus/varus angle, shifting load off the vulnerable compartment. It has to be worn tight or it doesn't work. Unlike the Ossur offloader, this one seems pretty solid and doesn't slip. I think it could even be affixed more securely with K-tape. Not really super comfortable to be worn for hours.
I did the usual bike sprint and even though I didn't time it or measure HR, that first hill where I'm standing for 30 - 35 R/L strokes is FAR more engaging to the cardio vascular system than anything I could do in a similar stretch sitting on the saddle. (True, Joe). Knee felt great afterward, but I'm not going to dive into standing bike sprints right away. A little at a time.
The pretty young nurse that fitted me with the brace just graduated from Auburn and is a friend of Ja'Kobe Tharp, new world record holder in the 110H, and Adidas track pro. It was fun talking track.
I'm definitely eventually going to try running with this thing at some point.
Still really light, mid 141s this morning. Meeting postponed so my next blood work postponed til Mon.
I joined this popular FB group called the "Great Cholesterol Conspiracy" and wow, the debate continues. Seems to me when you have research tools like Claude AI, people shouldn't have so much belief in unscientific notions. More on that next post.
Ah, cardiovascular impact of standing vs sitting is a different subject than glute involvement. There is no doubt that standing uses more aerobic capacity - there is major upper body involvement. That, and aerodynamics, is why for continuous cycling cyclists are almost always sitting. I completely accept your point there about the start of the ride but at the same time you are making it a strength event, and if every now and then you stand for a few strokes just having to support yourself with your upper body will drive heart rate, and in your case old non race tuned geometry that limits hip and glute involvement (per Claude) But if you were to really commit to cycling development and invested in modern performance related equipment and truly trained to improve cycling power you would be riding significantly faster seated and you would feel like shit and have zero desire to stand and waste energy unless a grizzly or a pack of pit bulls were chasing you.
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